BEREA, Ohio _ Baker Mayfield insisted Wednesday he trusts Odell Beckham Jr. despite two national reports stating the superstar wide receiver has told opposing coaches and players he wants to leave the Browns.
The subject was broached after practice when a reporter asked Mayfield whether the quarterback thinks Beckham has a desire to remain in Cleveland next season.
"I can't answer that for him," Mayfield said as the Browns (6-7) prepared for Sunday's road game against the Arizona Cardinals (3-9-1). "I mean, there's all the rumors going around, but I have my conversations with him, and I know what we talk about. So I trust him wholeheartedly."
Jay Glazer of FOX Sports and Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports reported earlier this week Beckham has told opposing coaches and players during game-day interactions this season "come get me" out of Cleveland.
Per unnamed sources close to Beckham who spoke with Robinson, the comments were made in October. The Browns had games that month against the San Francisco 49ers (Oct. 7), Seattle Seahawks (Oct. 13) and New England Patriots (Oct. 27).
Under contract with the Browns through 2023 after being traded from the New York Giants in March, Beckham is frustrated about his lack of elite production this season _ 59 catches for 844 yards and two touchdowns _ but also with his health. He's been dealing with hip and groin issues since training camp and will likely need sports hernia surgery after the season, a person familiar with the situation said.
"I think that's where the frustration comes from," Mayfield said, "and we can sense that."
Beckham has played all 13 games and 826 of the offense's 862 snaps (95.8 percent) this season. He's often been limited in practices, and that was the case again Wednesday.
"He's fighting through pain," Mayfield said. "It shows you how much he really wants to win, the things that I've continuously said about it. He wants to be the solution to help us."
After Sunday's 27-19 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, Mayfield criticized the Browns' medical staff for the way it has handled Beckham's injury and opined OBJ should have had surgery in the summer and missed a game or two instead of playing hurt all season.
Mayfield quickly apologized on Twitter, but did he feel the need to meet with team's medical personnel since then?
"Yeah, I had the conversations I needed to within our building," Mayfield said. "Like I said when I addressed it afterward, the affect that those words have in the bigger scheme, the bigger picture were not my intentions. So the people within our building, like I said, know where I'm coming from.
"They know my frustration. They know that if I was happy-go-lucky about everything, then we'd have a real problem on our hands. But I talked to the people I needed to, so I'm confident in that, and now it's moving forward."
